Tuesday, October 20, 2015

Economic Journal - Tuesday, 10/20/2015

(As of 7:20 am PST)

Earnings announcements are dominating the headlines Tuesday as investors sifted through a mixed batch of reports this morning. Nearly 20 companies are set to report today as Q3 earnings season hits its peak this week. Harley Davidson kicked things off ahead of the opening bell with a disappointing profit miss that sent the stock tumbling more than 10%. Shares of Travelers Cos., United Technologies and Verizon are all seeing gains early in the session after reporting earnings ahead of forecast. Earnings announcements from Chipotle, Yahoo and Discover Financial are all expected after the closing bell today. More than 100 companies are set to report earnings this week, with the market bracing for a flood of news. Economic news is light today although a couple reports on housing are grabbing some attention. Housing starts for September rose to an 8 year high as construction of new homes rose 6.5%. However, building permits, a sign of future demand, fell 5% in September. Overall, housing demand remains strong. In overseas action, Asian markets finished Tuesday’s session mixed while European indexes look set to close with modest losses. Gold, oil and other commodities are ticking higher as are interest rates. With the Federal Reserve in its “blackout period” now, unable to speak directly to its interest rate policies until its Oct 27-28 meeting, expect market action to be driven mostly by earnings.

No comments: